Kay Papa News

June Trip 2010

by Tom Harris

In Matthew 25, Jesus describes a basic

Christian calling. Feed the hungry.

Give drink to the thirsty. Welcome the

stranger. Clothe the naked. Care for

the sick. Visit prisoners. Then, not only

does Jesus lay out these basics, but he

imbues this work with profound theo-

logical significance. When we do per-

form these tasks for those in greatest

need, we are performing these tasks

for Jesus himself. “Truly I tell you, just

as you did it to one of the least of

these you did it to me.” (Matthew

25:40) The Letter of James expresses a

similar priority for our work. “Religion

that is pure and undefiled before God

the Father, is this: to care for orphans

and widows in their distress, and to

keep oneself unstained by the

world.” (James 1:27)

The work we are doing in Haiti meets

this criteria as closely as any work I’ve

been a part of. This is not to say that

charity at home is unimportant. We

have hungry and homeless in our own

city. Yet, in Haiti, the children of Kay

Papa Nou and Unity House are hang-

ing on the bottom rung of the ladder

and there really is no net below them.

Our visit in June reminded me how

simple and essential our support

really is for these children. A gener-

ous helping of rice and beans twice a

day. A roof over their heads. Clothing.

Education. We are their only net.

Without our support these critical ele-

ments of life cannot exist for them.

Without these they fall. One day we

hope they will find ways to support

themselves as the nation of Haiti lifts

itself out of its harsh conditions. Until

then we are there. And what a privi-

lege it is to be there. Because when

we catch these little ones in our net of

love and support, we catch Christ.

Pastor Tom Harris playing tic tac toe

Govans Presbyterian Church, 5828 York Rd., Baltimore, MD 21212 Tel: 410-435-9188 www.govanspres.org

Roland Park Presbyterian Church, 4801 Roland Ave., Baltimore, MD 21210 Tel: 410-889-2000 www.rolandparkchurch.org

Feed the Hungry

Wayne Fritze at CHRICHA Children’s Camp Pastor Mark Hanna & David &

Danny’s 6-month son Daniel

Nehemie, Fedlie, Joyce & Daniel

"Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom promised to those who love him?" James 2:5

School

Nouvelle Institution

CHRICHA

Earthquake

Thank you for your support. We carried 8 suitcases each weighing 50 lbs. to

Haiti filled with—shoes, clothing for David and Danny’s new son Daniel,

dresses for girls, pants and shirts for boys, new underwear, new socks,

toothbrushes, toothpaste, band aids, antibiotic ointment, vitamins, hair ac-

cessories for the girls, washcloths, towels, colored pencils, paper, French sto-

rybooks, and more. Candy and bracelets were passed out. Melissa Gregory

and the Verb supplied handmade beaded bracelets. Cards and a few individ-

ual sponsor gifts were also distributed.

The Children

Presidential Palace June 16

No evidence of rebuilding

Not much

evidence of

rebuilding.

Port-au-Prince

still a city of

tents.

8 Bags - Thank you!

Classes are held at Unity House for

both girls and boys. The children are

divided into 4 groups according to

their level.

New teachers are working at the

school since the earthquake when

2 teachers died.

by Mark Hanna In the midst of the heat and humidity

of our Baltimore summer, the bliz-

zards and cold of February seem a

world away. But that was when our

adventure to Haiti had its beginning

for me. With news and images of the

earthquake weighing heavily on our

minds, the Mission Committee of Ro-

land Park Presbyterian Church took

notice of Govans Presbyterian

Church’s involvement with the Kay

Papa Nou orphanage. We had been

looking for something “more” mission

wise for some time and had even bat-

ted about the idea of partnering with

a nearby church. And so we called Pas-

tor Tom and told him we wanted to

learn more about Kay Papa Nou. He

led us to Joyce Kruse and RPPC’s Mis-

sion Committee invited them to one of

our potluck dinner meetings. Joyce’s

passion as she talked about the chil-

dren of Haiti was persuasive. When,

toward the end of the evening, she

played a recording of the children

singing, I was sold. How could these

children be singing such beautiful

songs of joy and faith given their cir-

cumstances? I was ready to pack my

bags and go there to find the answers

to my question.

Beyond the desire to go, getting pre-

pared took more effort. Arranging

schedules with Tom, Joyce and Wayne

Fritze (chair of RPPC’s Mission Com-

mittee), buying tickets, getting vacci-

nations, updating my passport, buying

a ground mat and mosquito netting

(which I would end up not needing),

and many more details. So when our

plane landed in Port-au-Prince on June

14, the wintry blast and perhaps even

some of my initial enthusiasm felt like

a distant memory—except for those

voices of the children singing.

Why are they singing? I still wanted

my answer.

I can tell you this much: it does not

come from their environment. I have

never played witness to such extreme

poverty in my life and this is not the

first third world country I have visited.

It is the utter lack of infrastructure

that is so unfathomable to me. Elec-

tricity is sparse and unreliable, as is

running water. Trash collection seems

to be non-existent and so it is quite

common to see huge piles of trash

along the side of the road. This lack of

structure is reflected in transportation

as well. The roads were full of rubble

and holes. And if there were any for-

mal traffic laws I could not detect

them. It made me wonder about the

incentive any individual in such an en-

vironment would have to pull them-

selves out of poverty.

Yet the people of Haiti,

and especially the peo-

ple of Kay Papa Nou

and CHRICHA, stand in

stark contrast to their

seemingly hopeless

environment. To begin

with the mundane, as

we traveled from place

to place we would

regularly encounter

traffic situations that

would befuddle and

perturb most Maryland

drivers. However, by and large, the

Haitians handle them calmly and cour-

teously. It may seem silly, but after

witnessing it time and time again you

begin to see a pattern emerging. I also

noticed that no matter where we were

in the city, no matter how far from our

home base, our hosts and guides al-

ways met people they knew. It led me

to ask— sort of jokingly— “Do you

know everybody in Haiti?” To which

one of our guides replied—seriously,

but with a smile—“Yes! We are all one

family in Haiti.”

That typifies the group feeling of the

Haitian people. Time and time again I

witnessed Haitians helping each other

out, not to get something in return,

but simply because they could. They

seem to have a keen sense of their

interdependence. They realize, not in

some removed, far off, abstract way,

but in their every day, concrete, first

hand experiences that their well being

is tied to that of the other. They know

that they need each other to survive.

And so being able to help another is

not a burden, but an occasion for joy.

All of this sets the context for meeting

David and Danny Guillaume and the

people of Kay Papa Nou and CHRICHA.

And while the overall attitude of the

Haitian people helps to explain some

of what I learned about our incredible

hosts, it by no means makes it any less

remarkable. Why are

they doing this? Why, in

a country that leaves

you with so little, would

anyone decide to share

all that they have with

children they barely

know? It turns out that

their reason is not at all

different from anyone

else who has felt God’s

call on their life: be-

cause they can do no

other. “We are called to

live the life of Jesus,”

David explained. “He is

no longer here with us, but when we

follow in the way he showed us, his

spirit lives through us. We just try to

do what Jesus would do.” I could not

but help of think of that well known

scene from Luke 18: 15-16: People

were bringing even infants to him that

he might touch them; and when the

disciples saw it, they sternly ordered

them not to do it. 16

But Jesus called for

them and said, “Let the little children

come to me, and do not stop them; for

it is to such as these that the kingdom

of God belongs.”

(Continued on page 4)

From Palancia, Age 11

“When I grow up, I must

hold the children’s hands

& take care of them, the

same way they take care

of me at My Father’s

House (KPN). I will be a

nurse so I can take care

of people when they are

sick. This is what I want

to do when I grow up be-

cause I love them.”

Why Are They Singing?

(Continued from page 3)

And what about those children? Fi-

nally, I thought when I met them, I can

get the answer to my question: why

are they singing? For young children

they have experienced such incredible

hardship so early in life. Surely they

must feel it. Surely they must have

some sense that life can be better

than this. Perhaps their singing is sim-

ply the foolish or naïve music of chil-

dren and nothing more. Or maybe it is

a song of hope for a better life, some-

where else, perhaps in the life to

come. Those were my thoughts be-

fore going down. After meeting them,

spending time with them, talking and

playing with them, seeing their smiling

faces and hearing their songs first

hand, I feel like the one who is naïve.

Their songs are not meant to be fool-

ish. They are quite serious. And they

are not about a hope in some other

reality. They are about the here and

now. If I had to guess now, it seems to

me that their singing is an expression

of gratitude for each day. You see,

instead of worrying about what they

do not have, they seem to simply be

thankful for what they do have. After

all, what they do have

is not insignificant by

any means: life, a safe

home, adequate

nourishment for their

bodies, a place to

learn and grow and,

above all, loving fam-

ily and friends. Isn’t

that reason enough

to sing?

And in the end I think it is the music

that I will remember most about Haiti;

not the poverty or destruction, not

the chaos or hopelessness, but the

sweet singing of children. And, as it

turns out, I am no longer as concerned

with needing to know exactly why it is

that they sing. It’s not so much that

my visit to Haiti gave me the answer I

was looking for as it is that I no longer

feel the need for an

explanation. I found

something even better

than an answer. I redis-

covered my own desire

to join with them in

their songs of joy and

faith!

Unexpected Gifts

Others outside of Govans have

heard of our work with Kay Papa

Nou and recently made contribu-

tions:

• Daughters of Dorcas

• Egyptian Sun

• Memorial for Bob Carlyle

• Church of Our Savior -

West Bloomfield, MI & Karen

Linnell

• Melina Turtle family

• Nancy Williams, Cincinnatti

• Oxford Academy -

Westbrook, Ct.

• Nancy & Elias Schwam -

Essex, CT.

CHRICHA is David’s charity is involved with 7

churches, several schools, and now runs a

camp for 45 children orphaned by the earth-

quake. 12 of these are known to have lost

both parents.

CHRICHA News — KPN &

Unity House

Since the earthquake, Hero Holi-

day, a Canadian group, gave KPN a

fresh coat of paint. They built a

kitchen at Unity House and put a

new roof on the chapel/school. At

the camp for children orphaned by

the earthquake, the tents which

were damaged by weather have

been replaced by a building by an-

other Canadian friend, John

Calaghan. Medical Teams Interna-

tional, including doctors and a psy-

chologist, examined all of David’s

children. They distributed medicine

and will keep individual records

and visit the children every few

months.

Haiti Visitor Bill Nathan, a friend of David’s, will

be visiting Govans on July 28 to

share information on David and the

children. Your invitation is coming!

Mail For now we will continue to de-

pend on visitors to the orphanage

to take and bring back mail from

the children. Email is too slow and

sporadic to be useful.